Fumbling Towards Ecstasy
by calito
Summary: At the beginning of a new century, a girl finds her soul mate in her husband’s best friend. In the times of the early 1900s, they can't be together by both their societies rules but even that won’t stop their love, for now.
1. Default Chapter

 Author's notes: well here is a new fic I was not planning on writing. I was hoping to finish one of the other two I have out right now before I put another one out but hey when life gives you inspiration you just got to take it. I was watching Vh1 two days ago at night and the new Sarah McLachlan video was out for the song called stupid. It is one of the best videos I have seen that actually touched me. I don't want to give much away but I highly suggest watching that video before reading this fic. You can find it at mtv.com or VH1.com; just look up Sarah Mclahlan and click on the video entitled Stupid. 

  Anyways, that video was the whole inspiration for this fic except I changed it up to fit the LJ Smith profile of course. So if you watch that video you'll get a better understanding of how I picture the vampire in this story to look like.  

 Title: Fumbling Towards Ecstasy 

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in here except for my own characters. I do not own anything by Sarah Mclachlan or LJ Smith.

Premise:  This story is set in the early 1900s where a divorce or a wife having an affair was looked down upon and considered a disgrace. Most young women of that time were brought up to believe that either your father or your husband's word was law. The wife was in charge of family and certain matters of the house only. They were breed to never to be dishonest to your husband or cheat on them even thought it was okay for them to do it.  Some of this may not be true but hey this is my story and this is what I gathered from the all the movies I have seen from that time. So enjoy and please r&r.

Chapter 1 

Lonely Hearts

 Ace, ten and a nine; that was what she was holding in her hands, but they were all useless. Emma looked down at her cards once more before looking at her three closest friends; their faces told the same story that hers did. 

 "Well then ladies, I think I'll call it a game," said the petite blonde as she laid her red king, queen and jack down for the whole table to see. 

 "My my, Scarlet looks like you've just won another game," smirked a tall redhead as she tossed her cards into the center of the table. 

 Emma sighed as she laid her cards down too, "Well then ladies, that's about all the poker that I can play for now; anybody for tea?" 

 The brunette in the corner laid her cards down too and stood up, "I would love a cup of tea, These card games always gave me such a headache," as she laid her hand on her forehead and patted it lightly. 

  "Why, Bernice you don't need to lay down, do you? We could call a doctor if you're filling faint," said the redhead as she stood up and laid a gentle hand on her. 

 "No no, don't be silly Madeline I'll be fine. I just need some rest," as she waved off her friend. 

 "Well ladies, tea will be served in the sun room," said Emma as she stood up from the table. A servant soon appeared and started cleaning it off immediately. 

 "It must be so wonderful to have such servants at your beck and call," said Scarlet as she walked over to Emma and laced her arm through hers. "Martin said we could only have ten this year but promised we would be getting more next year."

 "Why Scarlet, I hardly ever notice but I pray to god every night for my blessing and my husband," Emma said back as she put on her best smile. 

  "Always the modest one," said Madeline as she walked around the table to join the group. "But enough of this small talk Emma, tell us about the real story." 

"Well what do you want to know?" Emma asked back coyly as her friend all smiled back at her. 

 "Oh come on Emma, you're married to one of the richest men in the United States! There has to be something you can tell us." Exclaimed Bernice as she threw her arms above her. 

 "But I do not know what ya'll want to know," said Emma with her southern accent peaking through a little. 

 "Well," said Madeline as she paused, "what's it like to live in one of the largest mansions in the state?" 

 Emma let out a small laugh, "not as good as one might have thought. Its big and you get lost easily and it becomes a dark maze at night, one you're sure never to find your way out of unless you have an experienced maid by your side." 

 The three girls exchanged glances with each other before they looked excitedly back at Emma. "Any other questions," she said back teasingly as they passed halls after halls. 

 "What-," said Bernice before she was cut off by an excited Scarlet. 

 "I forgot to tell you about where Martin and I are going next month," Scarlet started telling excitedly. Emma pretended to listen as she walked wither three best friends but her mind kept on wondering like it had been doing so much these days. 

  The wedding had been last month and all of Philadelphia's society had been there. She had been so terrified when her mother told her she would be marrying Fernando Delacruz. He was a man in his mid 50, descendents of Europeans aristocrats. She and him had absolutely nothing in common, all he wanted was trophy wife that would bare him plenty of strong sons to carry the line. She was only 17 but already considered the right age to become a mother. Fernando had already been asking her if she had become pregnant since their wedding night but he didn't know that she had been taking herbs to stop it for now; she just wasn't ready for children yet. 

  "Emma, darling," said Madeline as she took her out of her thoughts, "which way to the sun room?" 

 Emma snapped back to reality as she smiled at her friends, "Sorry, it's past the entrance hall and two halls over. I told you it was easy to get lost in here." 

 The girls started talking once more, as Emma walked with them in silence. She could hear two male voices ahead where the entrance hall was at. We must have guest, Emma thought as she quickened her pace. 

  The girls followed Emma through the richly decorated halls; you wouldn't pass one patch of wall that wasn't covered by a painting or a window that wasn't properly dressed. 

  The giant windows in the entrance hall light up almost all the hallways leading to it. Emma could see her husband talking to a young gentleman that she vaguely recognized from the wedding.

 He was tall, with black hair that went perfectly with his tanned skin. His dark green eyes could hold you there for endless hours, as if drawing you into a spell. His Cheekbones were clearly visible as they showed off his chiseled face. He had been her husband's best man at the wedding; he had been the one that Emma had first made eye contact with while walking down the aisle. 

  As she got closer, Emma realized that her husband and he were in some deep conversation. 

 "What do you mean they left?" she heard her husband growl. 

 "They joined circle daybreak," the man said back. 

 Emma made sure that her heels made a louder clicking noise on the marble floors as she got closer. The two men looked up at the approaching woman, her husband anger quickly faded as he saw them. 

 "Ladies," he said as he held out a hand to Emma. She placed her gloved hand in his as he drew her closer to him. "You remember, Edmond Knightly from the wedding, don't you? He was my best man." 

 "How could I forget," Emma replied back as she held out her hand to him. Edmond took her gloved hand and kissed it lightly, all the while looking her in the eyes. 

  Emma felt a small shiver pass through her and Edmond smirked, as if he had seen it. "Oh pardon me ladies, where are the rest of my manors? Edmond," Fernando said as he turned to three women beside Emma. "These are my wife dearest friends. This is Madeline Winston, Bernice Johansson, and Scarlet Jones."

  Edmond turned to each of them and kissed all of their hands too like the proper gentleman he was, but all the while he kept glancing over at Emma making her eyes drop to the floor then back at him. 

 Emma could feel the heat crawling up her spine. There was no doubt this man was more than handsome but the way he kept looking at her and right in front of her husband was just outrageous. Even now when she looked up at him she could see him smirking, as if he knew what she was thinking. 

  "Well excuse us darling, but the ladies and I was just on our way to the sun room to have some afternoon tea," Emma said hastily. 

 "Well then enjoy your day," said Fernando as he kissed her on the cheek. Emma did her best not to cringe but she couldn't help but feel appalled towards this man, he was just too old for her. 

  The four girls walked off together pretending to talk about the weather until they were safely around the corner. 

 "That man is truly a god," said Bernice as she glanced back towards the direction of the entrance hall. 

 "He was about the dreamiest thing I have ever seen," said Scarlet as she held her hand over her hart. 

  "Scarlet!" exclaimed Madeline as she looked at her friend in shock. "You are a married woman! You should not be talking like that." 

 "Oh calm down Madeline, I was just looking," she said innocently as she walked down the hall. 

 "Well I'll admit there is much to look at," Madeline said as she bumped Bernice's hip. 

 "and what about you Emma?" asked Scarlet as she looked at her friend, "You sure have been quiet, and correct me if I'm wrong but I think Mr. knightly was giving you the eye back there."  

 "Scarlet, he is my husband's good friend and I will have no talk like that in this house!" she said nearly stomping her foot. 

 "Fine, but you must admit he was a well breed man indeed," Scarlet said back saucily. 

 Emma just smiled and shook her head at the same time. She would always love Scarlet no matter how scandalous she talked. 

  The sun room was up ahead and Emma could already see light filtering out into the hallway; its yellow beams match the yellow of her dress. 

 "So tell me Emma, when are you going to hold a dinner for your favorite friends? Bernice is going to need a husband soon and wouldn't it just be darling if she found him at one of The Delacruz's famous parties!" exclaimed Madeline as she looped her arm through the now embarrassed Bernice. 

 "Oh Bernice, you shouldn't be ashamed, think of yourself as independent," sighed Scarlet as she looped her arm through the other arm of Bernice. 

  "Easy for you to say Scarlet, you're already married and have a secured future," said Emma as she walked with them and into the sun room. 

  All four girls sat down at the lounge chairs. Its ceilings reached an amazing 20 ft, with glass paintings decorating the long windows. Dark wood aligned itself with these, creating an atmosphere of an old church. Giant plants swarmed the room, making it into a garden. When the girls first went in they had to walk through a path to get to their seats. The whole atmosphere of the room was just so beautiful and peaceful that the girls stopped their conversation for that brief moment and admired the beauty around them. 

 "Truly magnificent…" whispered Madeline. 

 Emma snapped out of the trance first because she heard one of the many maids roll in a tea cart. "Excuse me," she muttered as she walked through the path again. When she walked out of the jungle she saw a maid struggling to get the cart through the path. "I'll take that," she said to the maid who gratefully smiled back.

   As she readied the tea Emma could hear the faint sound of the three girls chatting. The plants were so thick though, she couldn't understand what they were saying. Humming to herself, Emma neglected to hear the sound of lonely boots walking down one of the main halls. It wasn't until a hand lightly placed itself on her shoulder that she was alerted to their prescience. 

  Emma nearly jumped a foot as she turned around to see who her intruder was. She was surprised though to see a very familiar face. "Mr. Knightly, you nearly scared the breath out of me," she said as she laid a hand over her heart. 

 "Please, call me Edmond," he said as he gazed down at Emma. 

 Emma was unable to hold eye contact and dropped her eyes immediately. "Do I make you nervous?" he asked in a husky voice as he took one step closer to her. 

 Emma self consciously took a step back, "no, not all Mr. Knight-I mean Edmond. You just scared me, that's all."

  Edmond looked down at her, a small smirk playing at the sides of his face. His Gloved hand softly caressed Emma's cheek but she was too scared to move her face like a proper lady would do. 

 "You are so beautiful," he said almost to himself as he drew his thumb down her bottom lip.   

  Emma exhaled deeply as she tried to contain the emotions threatening to expose themselves. "Please, Mr. Knightly, I must ask you to stop," she was barely able to get out. 

  "He doesn't deserve you," he said before he removed his hand but still continued to look her in the eyes. 

 Emma was surprised at the emotion she saw in his face. "Mr. knightly I…" she tried to say but was interrupted by footsteps coming down the hallway. 

 "Edmond, where are you?" said her husbands all too familiar voice. 

 "In here, old friend," Edmond said back as he gazed at Emma. 

 "What are you doing in there? We have much business to discuss," he said as he walked into the entrance of the sun room. "Come now," as he waved for Edmond to follow him, not even giving a second thought to why his wife looked extremely flustered around his best friend. 

 Edmond watched Fernando go and then turned back to Emma, "I hope we see each other again," as he reach down for her own gloved hand and kissed it. 

  Emma was speechless; she had never been treated this way by a man before, not even by her own husband. 

  "I...I," she tried to get out but was not able to; Edmond looked back at her and gave her a smile that would surly melt any girls young heart. 

  Emma watched him go and this time held his eyes as he looked back at her. She didn't understand what he had meant when he said, he didn't deserve her. She could only assume he was talking about Fernando, but that was his best friend. How could he say something like that about his best friend?

 Turning back to the tea, Emma took a napkin and patted it gently on her face. She was so flustered now because of Edmond and his very rash actions.  Smoothing down her dress Emma did everything she could to make it seem like none of that had happened. If anybody had seen that little scene a scandal would surly insure. 

  Picking up the Tea tray, Emma took a deep breath and started to walk where her friends were at. 

 "Wait, Madame," said a young maid as she ran over to help her. 

  "No no, I got it," said Emma politely. 

 "Yes ma'am," the maid said. "Mr. Delacruz wanted me to inform you that you will be having a dinner party soon for all your closest friends and his." The maid reached into her pocket and pulled out a slightly long piece of paper. "He wanted me to give you this. These are the people on his side that you must invite."

  Emma glanced down at the paper; there must have been twenty names on it. "I thought he said it was just for close friends?"

 "It is," was all the nurse said. 

 "Well then, place the list on my desk in my room please," she said as she turned and started walking down the path but turned around quickly. 

 "Ms," she said. 

 The young nurse turned around and looked at her, "yes, Madame?"

 "Is Mr. knightly on that list?" she asked back in an uncaring tone. 

 The young maid glanced down at the paper and Emma could tell she was reading it by the way her eyes moved. "Yes ma'am he is," she said. 

 "Oh," Emma muttered as she turned back around, "that's all," she said back to the maid to dismiss her. 

 The maid walked down the long hallways leaving Emma to her thoughts. What am I going to do, she thought. She couldn't possibly face Mr. knightly again, not after what had happened but deep in her heart she knew she must. He was her husband's best friend and no matter what his intentions were she had to respect him for her husband sake. So when the party came she would just pretend like nothing had happened at all but as the saying goes, easier said then done. 


	2. under my skin

Title: Fumbling Towards Ecstasy 

Author: Calito

Notes: hey everyone, sorry for the short delay but I finally have it for you, Chapter 2 of Fumbling Towards Ecstasy!! WOO-HOO!!

Anyways, so please enjoy and r&r!!

Thank you Castra for the review. I need to come up with a better Summary to this, that's probably why you thought it was going to be different but I had major writer's block that day. So enjoy this chapter!

 Hey Terriah, thanks for reviewing this one. I'm glad you liked it. Now lets jus hope I update this one better than Without Honor or Humanity. lol  

 Hey amber-rules. Glad to see you on another one of my stories! Any who, I really don't like stories where they characters are involved because it just seems unreal to me; mostly because the author makes them stay with their girlfriend/boyfriend/whatever instead of their soul mate but I was thinking what if they were in a time period were divorce was not accepted so will just see what happens. (Wow…major run on sentence) Oh well, I hope you like this one!! Enjoy…

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in here except for my own characters. I do not own anything by Sarah Mclachlan or LJ Smith.

Premise:  This story is set in the early 1900s where a divorce or a wife having an affair was looked down upon and considered a disgrace. Most young women of that time were brought up to believe that either your father or your husband's word was law. The wife was in charge of family and certain matters of the house only. They were breed to never to be dishonest to your husband or cheat on them even thought it was okay for them to do it.  Some of this may not be true but hey this is my story and this is what I gathered from the all the movies I have seen from that time. So enjoy and please r&r.

Chapter 2 

Under my Skin 

 The tight Corset was absolutely killing her sides. Emma placed a hand on the vanity to steady herself as she stood up. Her husband had bought her this dress straight from Paris and she did admit it was beautiful. 

  It was an emerald green with off the shoulder sleeves and black lacing at the neckline. It had a huge gathering of fabric in the back that reached all the way to the floor into a train. The color complimented her dark brown hair that was swept up in a loose bun. The only thing she disliked about it was that fact that she couldn't breath.

  Steadying herself in her new heels, Emma admired her reflection in the full length mirror. Well, she thought, I do look beautiful as she traced her hands down the fabric. Her bear skin stood out against the emerald green, making Emma remember to put her long black gloves on. There, she thought, I'm finished. 

  "Emma," rang a loud voice through the quiet room. 

 "Yes, in here," she yelled back as she went to her vanity and put her black earrings on. Fernando walked in; he was wearing a very expensive suit and carrying a good sized jewelry box.

 "There you are," he said as he walked up to Emma and looked at her dress. "You look very good," he said briskly. 

  "Thank you," Emma said as she looked at him through the mirror.  

 "Here, this is for you, I want you to wear it tonight," Fernando said as he handed her the jewelry box. 

 "What is it?" Emma asked as she held it in her hands. 

 "It's a necklace, and please be quick about it our guest will be arriving shortly." He said as he turned and walked out of the room. 

 Emma held the box in her hands as she watched her husband walk away; His behavior was so odd to her sometimes. Placing the box on her vanity, Emma sat down in the plush seat and opened it carefully. What was inside nearly took her breath away, a chocker, four inches thick of nothing but flawless diamonds. 

  Emma slowly brought her hand fourth and touched it gingerly. "Oh my," she mumbled as she traced the design of the necklace. Her husband was always surprising her with gifts, but nothing this expensive. 

  Carefully, pulling it out of the box, Emma draped it around her neck. The necklace was so heavy and cold on her bare skin, but the way it looked was just amazing. Snapping the back together, Emma admired herself in the mirror. The chocker completely covered her neck, from the collar bone to her chin. She titled her head so she could see the side, it was so beautiful. 

 Standing up, Emma positioned the necklace on her neck and did one more glance at the mirror. She looked like an American princess, if such a thing was possible. 

 Downstairs…

Emma walked into the main hall and was surprised to see already a few guest had arrived. She saw Fernando at the door greeting them as the butler took their coats. Oh my, she thought, she must have took to long getting ready. Quickening her pace, Emma took her place by her husband's side. 

  "Here she is, my lovely wife, Emma," said Fernando as he introduced her to their guest. 

 "So this is the lucky, girl," said a man who had to be in his late thirties. He took Emma's outstretched hand and kissed the black glove gently. Emma noticed that his eyes seemed to keep changing every time he moved, even his beauty was unnatural. Must be a European, she thought. They always had an odd look about them. Beside her, Fernando shifted back on fourth on each foot, as if nervous about something. 

  "The rest of the guests are in the living room," he gestured with his free hand. The vampire nodded and then winked at Emma. Emma's face instantly turned a bright red causing her to look down.

 "Don't mind him," Fernando muttered into her ear, "he's not properly mannered."

 Emma nodded lightly but continued to look at the floor, she was sure her cheeks were blazing right now. Fernando friends had some of the strangest ways of expressing themselves. Her thoughts instantly shifted to Edmond, with his liquid green eyes, jet black hair and…wait what was she thinking? She was standing right next to her husband fantasizing about him. 

  "Aahh…Edmond, Friend, how are you?" said Fernando as he lifted his hand up. Emma snapped her head up as the front door opened, revealing a slightly disheveled man. Taking off his trench coat and wiping the water from his face Edmond smiled. He reminded Emma of a wolf. 

  "Fernando," it rolled off his tongue, "fine weather isn't it?" he jokingly said as he shrugged the rest of the rain off of him.

 Fernando chuckled beside Emma, "yes it is, probably sent to us by some unfavorable friends."

  Edmond walked up to the couple and glanced at Emma, Emma once again felt her cheeks turn red and was confirmed when Edmond's smile grew.  

 "You remember Emma," Fernando said as he placed his hand around her waist.

 "How could I forget," Edmond drawled as he gently lifted her hand and kissed it lightly. 

 It sent shivers through her body and she hoped that Fernando hadn't felt it.

 Emma slowly slid her hand out of his and Edmonds eyebrows flew up ever so slightly. "So tell me Fernando, how is business," he asked while looking at Emma. 

 "Hectic, but this must wait until later to discuss," Said Fernando as his eyes shifted back to the door. Another couple had just walked in and it seemed to be someone very important by the way Fernando straightened up. 

  Edmond turned around and his wolf like smile returned, "I see the Redferns have arrived."

 "Yes they have, and we have much to talk about," Fernando said glancing back at Edmond. 

  Emma watched the exchange between them, she wasn't sure what was going on but assumed it was just business. Her mother always told her to never involve herself in that affair; that was the man's business. 

 "Edmond, would you mind escorting Emma to the dining room? I need to get some business deals out of the way," said Fernando as he held out Emma's hand. 

  Emma had to keep herself from showing shock on her face. She was hoping this entire night she wouldn't be alone with him again but it seemed her wishes were futile.

   Edmond glanced at Emma and smiled, "anything for a _friend_," he said as he gently took her hand and looped it around his. 

  Emma grudgingly let him lead her through the myriad of hallways as he husband left to talk to the Redferns, whoever they are. 

  "It's been awhile since I've last seen you, "Edmond whispered into her ear, sending shivers down her back. 

 "Please not again," Emma muttered as she tried to pull away from him but Edmond wouldn't let her. They had turned down about three different hallways and Emma was sure they weren't near the Dinning room. 

 "Not what again," he said as he looped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him.  

 His gloved hand lightly traced her chocker as a small chuckle came to his lips, "I see Fernando bought you another gift, funny how it covers up your whole neck."

 "I'm sorry I don't see the humor in it," she said as she tried to pull out of his grasp. He was making her more and more nervous as he kept on leading her further into the house. 

 "Please take me to the dining room," she said as she kept on fighting him but she could tell this was just a game for him. 

 "Why do I make you nervous?" he asked casually.

 "I…you…" Emma tried to find the words. 

 Edmond took this chance and gently pushed her towards the wall, pinning her arms to her side. Emma held her breath as Edmond leaned in closer to her. 

 "What makes you so nervous?" he whispered as his gloved hand lightly traced her lips. Emma squeezed her eyes shut but it wasn't doing any good; she could still feel his warm breath on her skin. The smell of his aftershave intoxicated her, but why did she feel this way? Why does she keep letting him do this to her? Emma slowly opened her eyes and was met with liquid green.

 "Edmond," she was barely able to get out. 

  "Yes," he replied as he slowly started leaning in, his gazed fixed on her lips. 

 "We can't do this," even though inside she was waiting for his lips to be on hers. 

 A small smile showed on Edmond's face, "really?" he drawled. They were only breaths away from each other and Emma could feel something inside awakening. She closed her eyes again, but only this time in expectation. She could feel him almost on her this time…

 "Emma, are you down here?" rang a female voice down the hallway. 

Emma's eyes flew open and immediately pushed against Edmond. The two flew a part quicker than the eye could see, right in time for Scarlet to walk into the hallway. Emma still stood up against the wall and Edmond was on the other side. Scarlet didn't even look twice at the situation but just smiled when she saw the two of them. 

 "There you are Emma, oh and good evening Mr. Knightly," she said as she held out her hand to him. 

Edmond smiled and kissed her hand lightly, "Good evening Mrs. Jones. Excuse me ladies, but I must be getting back to the party. Emma can you find your way to the dinning room with Mrs. Jones?" he said as he gazed at her, winking ever so slightly. 

  Emma just nodded, afraid her voice would betray her if she tried to speak.

  "Well then good evening ladies," as he did a small nod with his head and walked off into the darkened hallway. 

 Scarlet watched him go, sighing every so slightly. "What a man," she mumbled. 

  Emma held a hand over her stomach trying to gather her strength again before her friend realized anything was a miss. 

 "So, Emma," said Scarlet as she turned around, her eyebrows arched ever so slightly. "What were you two doing?" as she placed her hands on her hips waiting for an answer. 

 Emma sucked in her breath at first, fear flooding her senses. "What…what ever do you mean?" she asked with her confidence slowly coming back to her. 

  Scarlet watched her. Emma could tell she suspected something but Emma wouldn't dare confirm it. 

 "Well," Scarlet paused, "Bernice is being pursued by so many men and she needs a proper chaperon and I…" she said going back to her normal behavior, "am just way to busy to do that."

  "So you want me to watch her," Emma asked, a small smile playing at her lips. 

 "If it wouldn't be too much to ask," she said looping her arm through Emma's and dragging her down the hallway. 

   Emma listened, well tried to listen to what Scarlet was talking about, but her mind kept floating back to Edmond. His eyes, his lips everything about that man drove her absolutely crazy. She remembered how close he was to kissing her, god she couldn't believe it either. She wanted him to kiss her but she knew deep down inside that she shouldn't. She was married, she made a vow and she had to stick to it; if only he wasn't so handsome. 

 "Emma, have you even been listening to what I've been saying?" scarlet said snapping Emma out of her thoughts. 

"Huh…I'm sorry what about Bernice?" she said trying to cover. 

 "I stopped talking about Bernice ages ago," Scarlet said eyeing her. 

 "I'm sorry Scarlet, it's just with this party I've had so much on my mind," Emma said trying to think up the best excuse she could. 

Scarlet shrugged, "oh its all right, it was just me gossiping. Nothing your ears should be hearing anyways."

  Emma smiled, "of course not."

  The two girls made their way through the hallways and into the dinning room. Scarlet left Emma's side and went and joined martin where he was talking with some of Fernando's associates. Emma glanced around the room, making sure everything was together before she rang the bell to serve dinner. She could hear Fernando's thunderous voice in the other room, talking up a storm with someone. 

  Well, she thought looking around one more time; everything seems to be in order. The food was waiting in the kitchen to be served, the napkins and glasses were laid out, and all that was missing were the guest. Emma nodded to the Maid that was patiently standing next to the door were the guest were. The maid turned around and rang a small bell signaling the beginning of dinner. 

 The guest poured in, all fifty of them at once. Emma stood there, a smile plastered on her face as she showed the guest to their seats; half of them she knew half of them she didn't know. The dinning room was so large that she nearly ran out of breath just walking up and down it. Unconsciously she would look up when someone passed her, wondering if it was Edmond.  

 About twenty minutes had passed and the entire guests were finally seated except for a few; Emma looked down the table and saw her husband seated at the very end, signaling for her to come. Nice to know you waited, she thought as she started to move but a gentle hand on her arm made her turn around. 

 "Do you mind escorting me to my seat," said Edmond; a devilish smile playing at his lips. 

 Emma was a little shocked to say anything but managed to sputter out a yes, which seemed to amuse Edmond even more. 

  "Don't tell me I still make you nervous," he whispered in her ear as they walked to their seats. 

 Emma tried to keep a smile up but Edmond was not helping. "Not now," was all she was able to mutter before they reached their spots by Fernando. 

 "There you are," Fernando said as he stood up and pulled Emma's chair out for her. Sitting down Emma tired not to look at Edmond as he sat down on the other side of her; I'll kill who ever made the seating arrangements she thought. 

 "Well…" started Fernando as everyone situated in but Emma didn't hear him; all she could do was think about Edmond. She could sense him right next to her, she could smell him and she had no idea how she was going to get through this dinner. 

 "And to our guest of honors…Hunter Redfern," said Fernando as everybody started to clap, snapping Emma back to reality. 

  Emma brought her hands up and started clapping too; a slight nudge in her arm made her look over. Edmond was clapping but looking down at her through the corner of his eye; like he knew what she had been thinking. Straightening her back, Emma ignored him. 

  The rest of the dinner went by smoothly, Emma made sure she played her best wife act to the fullest and tried not to look over at Edmond as much as possible. Though, it was especially hard when he would run his hand over hers underneath the table. 

  At the end of the dinner, the guest slowly started to say their good byes and leave. Emma painfully stood by the doors, wishing them a safe trip home until her feet where about to kill her. 

  "I'll be back," she whispered to Fernando who had been standing next to her. 

He nodded; too engrossed in his own conversation to ask where she was going. Emma held a hand to her head as she made her way down the long hallways, she really whished her bedroom was much closer because it felt like she was about to collapse. 

 Placing a hand on the wall, Emma took a moment to catch her breath, the corsets were really painful. 

 "Emma," said a voice from the dark. Turning around Emma was surprised to see Edmond leaning up against the wall across from her. He was so close but she didn't even hear him approach. 

 "Edmond…" she whispered.

 She knew what was coming, she knew that it was wrong but something inside her wanted it so bad and before she could move Edmond had crossed the room and was in front of her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and in matter of seconds his lips were on hers. His other hand was intertwined in her hair; hers were wrapped around his neck securely and in the midst of it all Emma didn't even realize that her vision had faded to a soft pink….. 

To be continued…..


	3. Chosen

Author: Calito

Title: Fumbling towards Ecstasy

]Author's notes: Hey everybody! Chapter 3 is finally out!!  Took me awhile to write this because this is my first story where the characters don't immediately reject the bond so I had a lot of deleting and then retyping going on. Any who this chapter is a little bit shorter than normal but after this is when the story really starts to take off. I think this will actually be the first story I finish and hopefully that will be sometime this summer which is in exactly 9 days!! WOO-HOO!! So enjoy and please review!!

Hey Terriah, thanks for reviewing and most likely you'll probably be seeing more updates on this story then my other two so enjoy!! lol

Thank you Silence the mirror for the review! I always like to hear from somebody new and you left a really good one too. I visit Fiction press a lot actually, they have some amazing writers over there and I'm going to have to look for yours now. So I hope to see you again!!

Chapter 3

Chosen

An explosion went off all around Emma as every possible color known to man started to swirl around her, no them, she could see Edmond. Emma grasped onto Edmond to steady herself from falling. Pulling out of the kiss, Emma looked around, the hallway was no longer there, and the house had melted away.

  "What is this?" she said with wonder as Edmond looked down at her. He looked up and his eyes traced what was around them, "It's my dream coming true," he said.

  Emma looked up at him, "what do you mean," she asked, as she leaned into his tight embrace, unsure of what was going on.

 "Emma do you believe in vampires and witches," Edmond asked?

 Emma pulled back a little, "what are you talking about? What is this?" she said as she looked around her surroundings again.

 "Emma please," Edmond whispered. "Don't be frightened, but do you believe in vampires?" he asked more serious.

 "Of course not, no," she said as she looked in his green eyes but something in her head was telling her otherwise.

 "I'm going to tell you something and you're going to have to believe me," he muttered.

 "What is it," Emma asked as an uneasy feeling crept up her spine.

  "I'm a vampire and your husband is a witch," he stated.

  Emma was instantly taken back, pulling out of their embrace. The colors drained bringing back the dark hallway and the feeling of warmth disappeared. It happened so fast that Emma instantly became dizzy.

   "Is this some kind of joke?" she asked as she leaned on the wall, her breath coming short.

  Edmond stood there, his eyes holding so much emotion. "No, of course not but it's the truth."

 Emma watched him, his eyes held no mischief like they usually did and somewhere; in the back of her head she knew he was telling her the truth. Emma dropped her gaze and she could hear Edmond walk up to her. His fingers lightly went under her chin making her look him in the eyes.

  "Don't be afraid, but it's what I am," he said as his finger lightly swept over her lips.

 "I-I don't understand. What do you mean you're a vampire?" she barely got out.

 Edmond smiled down at her, "it just means I have more advantages than you do," he said as he leaned down and tried to kiss her again.

 Emma pushed against him. She wasn't going to do this when she was so confused over what was going on. By right she shouldn't even be having this conversation. She was married, and in the past five minutes betrayed everything she had made a vow of.

 "Wait," she said, clearly seeing Edmonds disappointment. "What did you mean my husbands a witch?"

 Edmond sighed, "Fernando comes from a long line of witches. He is one of the few male witches that exist in his family because for some odd reason witches are mostly girls."

 "Why is that?" Emma asked.

 Edmond shrugged as he leaned in closer to Emma, pushing her up against the wall. His hand lightly traced the side of her cheek and Emma had to hold all her emotions in so she wouldn't give in to him.

  "What was that we just went through then?" Emma asked as Edmond started leaving light pecks on her swollen lips.

  This time Edmond got serious and pulled back from her, "it's called a soul mate bond. It means that there is someone out there who perfectly matches you in everyway. They are your one true love and what you just felt is what happens when you find that person."

  Emma stared at Edmond, everything has just been thrown at her in the past five minutes and it was taking her a few seconds to grasp it all.

"If you don't believe me think back to the first time we met. You do remember the wedding," Edmond said as he took Emma's hand and kissed it lightly.

Emma watched helplessly but she did remember that she had felt something when she walked down that aisle and saw Edmond next to Fernando. It was almost as if she had recognized him even though she had never met him before.

 Emma looked into Edmond's eyes, "how come it just now happened? We've been around each other numerous times and nothings happened."

  Edmond smiled, "well according to legend it requires skin to skin contact and every time we've touched," as he ran his hand down her cheek, "we've had some type of garment on."

 "Oh," Emma muttered. She was starting to believe everything Edmond had told her, she always had known there was something off about the people her husbands had dealings with.  I wonder if they were witches to, Emma thought.

  "Mostly vampires, some shape shifters, and a few witches," Said Edmond.

 Emma snapped her head up, "what? How did you?"

Edmond laced his arm around her waist and pulled her closer, "your thoughts are very loud," as he lowered his head to kiss her.

Emma pulled back, "you can hear my thoughts?"

 Edmond smiled, "yes, it's a gift we vampires have and I have to say you have some very interesting thoughts."

Emma lowered her head; she could feel the heat creeping up her neck. She could hear Edmond chuckling softly as he continued to look at her.

  "Does that mean you could hear everything I've been thinking; even before we touched," as she lifted her head up and looked at Edmond?

He nodded softly.

 "What about other vampires," she said uneasily? 

"Only if they look hard enough," he paused as Emma's eyes grew a little bigger. "But you have some very cryptic thoughts though or you've been taking a certain infamous herb."

Emma knew what he meant, the herbs she had been taking to prevent pregnancies, "how did you know about that," she asked?

 "There are only a handful of herbs that can conceal a human's thoughts from a vampire and that happens to be one of them and the fact that I know Fernando has been expecting a child ever since you two got married."

Emma looked up into Edmond's eyes, "this is still so strange to me Edmond."

 "I know it is but you have to promise me Emma that you won't tell anyone about what I've just told you. Not about the soul mate bond, your husband, me, and most definitely not about the night world. They'll kill you for that Emma," he said with no sign of amusement.

  Emma nodded her head as she leaned into him, she could feel his embrace grow tighter. She understood that now her life was forever changed, just by touching him she knew she could never love another man. That he was truly the one for her but she was already taken. She made a vow to Fernando that she knew deep down inside she couldn't deny, not to her and not to Edmond. Squeezing her eyes shut Emma tried to shut out the nagging voice in her head telling her to stop this now and walk away but she knew she already made her choice when she first kissed him. She made it before she knew she belonged to him.

 "I don't know if I can do this Edmond," she whispered.

"Leave the worrying to me," was all he said as he cupped her chin and looked into her eyes. Emma smiled and leaned into him; his mouth was on hers and she kissed him back. Wrapping her arms around him, Emma clung to him desperately. This was forbidden yet she couldn't stop she could never stop because for once in her life she knew what it was like to be truly loved.

To be continued……


	4. same time, same place

Hiya guys! Okay here is a short chapter 6. This is just insight into what Edmond is thinking.

   I also want to say something else. If I haven't updated in awhile check my authors profile because I update that a lot. That will usually tell you how far I'm on a story or what's going on. I will also have stats on each of my stories and where they are at right now. So people that are reading Curse of a Hero please go and read it.

  Thanks…

  Reviews

Ice-sway, totally agree with you on that point! I think every good story needs at least one good looking vampire! Lol enjoy the short chapter!

Hey amber! Thanks for the review. This story is going to be getting really interesting very soon I hope. A lot of fights will happen between a whole bunch of people so keep reading to see!!

 Terriah, always good to see you on my review page. Enjoy this chapter and I hope you like werewolves because I'm putting out a new story soon based on them!

Chapter 4

Same Time, Same Place

  Edmond sat back in his carriage; a very uncomfortable ride. Every little bump that the carriage hit would send him up a foot in the air and to make matters worse he had a headache. He should really talk to Fernando about investing in some streets to his house.

  Shifting back on the seat, Edmond glanced out the window. Another day had gone by without seeing her, without being able to touch her. Every night it became harder to sleep and when he did she plagued his dreams. Early in the morning though, before the sun came up he would lie in bed and would find her mentally. She was always so bright in his mind, so constant, so beautiful. That would usually give him a moment's peace but would flee as quickly as it came.

  Life was cruel, that was for sure. He had looked for her for so long. Ever since that witch had told him about her but he never thought she would be handed to him in the form of his business partner's wife.

  He had thought it was such irony when he had first seen her walking down the aisle. He had heard about her plenty, Fernando's human wife. It had caused such uproar in the Night world community, but mostly the angry families that had hoped Fernando would have married their daughters and increased their income. When he saw her though, she had taken the breath from him. He recognized her as his, and she recognized him too. It had been there moment; those few precious seconds had belonged to them only to be ripped away when the priest started the ceremony. 

  All his life, everything had been given to Edmond on a shiny silver platter. His family raised him with the best, he was after all their only male heir and they had made sure he had known that. He went to the best schools, worn the best clothes, had the best women and now the one thing that should have belonged to him was just out of his reach, Emma. The irony of it all still killed him. Now he had been reduced to making up excuses to visit Fernando more often just to glimpse her in the halls.

  Fernando would never suspect a thing unless he directly walked in on them kissing. Fernando was smart, just not in the right areas but still the risk was always there. He could tell this distressed Emma the most, she was true to her promises and she had made a huge one to Fernando when she had married him and Edmond always knew that would be between them.

 It had been a week since the party, a week since they had officially found out about each other and Edmond could feel the bond growing stronger. But something always stood between them and Edmond knew that would always happen unless he took her away from Fernando.

 Sighing, Edmond looked out the glass window. Everything looked so bleak including him, maybe it was just being away from Emma but it was really starting to get to him.

This soul mate bond was trickier than what he thought it was going to be. He had heard stories about it, the feelings he would feel for his soul mate. The constant longing to be near that person but he didn't think it would be this bad. Even Fernando has asked him if he had fallen ill, even though it was near impossible for a vampire to be sick.

  Shifting in his seat, Edmond could see the top of Fernando's house on the hill; it was a huge estate which proved to be a good thing for Emma and him to accidentally bump into each other. She was still nervous about everything, especially the apart about him being a vampire. It had taken a much longer conversation the next day to get her to understand everything but even still Edmond could tell she was still on edge.

  Emma, he thought as her face flashed in his mind and he felt that same ache. His longing for her became worse everyday and his heartache greater. The soul mate bond had grown so strong in such a short time. It had surprised Edmond at first when he would see Emma and feel the bond pulling him towards her. It became stronger everyday after.

   Edmond watched as the carriage went through the massive iron gates with a giant D initial on it. Fernando's prescience was everywhere and Edmond knew he would have to plaster on his face very soon. He would have to go through seeing Emma with Fernando and that ring on her finger that showed that she didn't belong to him. He hated every minute of it. Even if she could get away from him no one in America would give her a divorce from him. Only men could do that to their wives who didn't supply a proper heir and the night world would never accept her, not with Fernando as an Ex husband. Both their societies rules were against them and Edmond hated them for that.

 As he glanced out the window, he could see Fernando waiting at the door for him. Anger immediately swelled in him one more time before he was able to subdue it. He had to act like the dear friend to the man he despised most only so he could glance at his beloved in the hallways. Edmond quickly straightened up his jacket and hair before the door was opened. Fernando stood there with his giant grin and Edmond plastered on his as the soul mate link flared to life.


	5. a hole in the world

So after about what 2-3 months or so we finally have an update!! YAY!! Anyways, sorry about the wait, family problems became a big issue during the summer and writing was one of the last thing on my to do list but no worries here it is!!

**Castra- Sorry for the wait but here's the new one. Fernando should react pretty interesting when he does find out about the affair. He's very passive right now with his whole attitude and doesn't really show much interest with his wife unless asking if she's pregnant yet but then again he is a night world and might just have a completely different side to him. So we'll just have to wait and see how that comes about!!**

**Terriah- werewolves are pretty cool right ;) I thought it would be interesting to write a story on the least respected group of the night world. Try to show a whole new side to them that not a lot of writers have touched base on! So enjoy and thanks for the review!**

**Magistrix Mundi- good question about marrying a human. My whole theory is that the night world seems to be rather high on themselves so they wouldn't want to mix blood with "half breeds" so they try to stick with pure bloods. Eventually after a thousand years of this they're starting to run out of witches that aren't already related to them so they need to bring new blood in and slowly change it to new pure blood. Even though Fernando is a male all of the female witches are mostly related to him somehow. It's also explained a little in this chapter too!! **

**Calisia girl- thanks for the review! Nice to know I can leave people speechless... lol**

**Babe in black- looks like you got your wish a lot sooner than others. I decided to write this out after I got your review! So thanks!**

Enjoy ya'll

Chapter 5 Fumbling Towards Ecstasy

A Hole in the World

"Edmund," she whispered as she felt his hand in circle her waist. He pulled her closer to him and placed kisses all over her neck.

"Yes," he drawled as he continued his work.

"Don't," she said as she looked around quickly. The hallway seemed disserted but that could all change with someone coming out from one of the many rooms.

"Why? You belong to me," he said as he turned her around to face him. She put her hands in front of her to try to keep him away but to no avail.

"Don't fight me joli," he said as he started kissing her.

"Edmund," she said in between kisses, "what about Fernando? Where was he when you left him?"

Edmund pulled back then and looked at her painfully, "you had to mention him," he said almost teasingly but still laced with jealousy and anger.

Emma sighed as she looked at him, she hated even thinking of Fernando when they had these private moments together but she couldn't help it. The stress this affair was giving her was starting to keep her up at night.

"Edmund please," she said almost annoyed as she turned around and started walking again. She felt Edmund following closely behind her but chose to ignore him.

"Oh Emma," he said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her back to him. "Don't worry about that man, he is far from here."

"How do you know," she asked as she looked down the hall again.

"Because I would be able to feel his mind if he came near us," he said tapping his forehead lightly.

"I forgot about that," she mumbled mostly to herself.

"You seem disappointed," he said as he looked at her squarely.

Emma looked at him quickly then smiled, "why would I be disappointed?"

He didn't answer at first and Emma could feel him almost searching her mind, like a reader reading a book.

"Edmund," she said again as she laid a hand on the side of his face. His green eyes darkened but then went back to normal as he kissed the inside of her palm.

"I wish it didn't have to be this way Emma. Us sneaking around the hallways like this," he said as he sighed heavily.

"I know," she replied. An awkward silence followed as neither of them knew what to say. Emma was once again reminded of her marriage vows and even though the situation was unfair she was still breaking them.

"Come on," he said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him.

"Where are we going?" she asked as he started kissing her again.

"Out of this dreary hallway," he said as he pulled her with him.

Emma glanced back at the empty hallway, praying that nobody would come in. Edmund seemed so excited and happy when he was with her that she could hardly ever refuse him. It had been about week since that had been alone with each other. It was always hard for both of them to disappear without making it seem obvious. Emma was mostly worried about the staff talking; she didn't know how loyal they were to Fernando. From what she had learned from them he was always kind and kindness always paid off.

Edmund was always assuring her though that he would know if anyone was suspecting them. He said his abilities stretched far and wide, and the staff knew to keep certain things quiet since they served in a night worlder's home but she was still unsure. It was hard to keep her nerves controlled, especially after she and Edmund would part ways. Did it show that they had been together; could Fernando smell Edmunds cologne on her when he hugged her? She always had to hold her hands in these moments because they would start to shake, for those split moments of contact with Fernando she would never be so frightened in her life. The possibility that he would find out, that her family would find out what she had done, how she had disgraced them would hurt her more than anything and could kill both Edmund and her.

The night world's policy of not mixing with humans was what frightened her the most. Fernando was only allowed to do it because the witch community was slowly dying out. They had all tried to keep their line pure of any other blood but witches that they would have had to start marrying inside their own family if they wanted to uphold the tradition. Edmund had told her that Fernando approached the Night World council twice before they approved him to legally marry a human and that human just happened to be her.

He had also explained to her that night world was ruthless against people that broke the law of involving humans into the night world. He had told her the original plan with her was to wait until total confidence was placed in her then would be told about the night world. Fernando thought it would be best after she had given birth to the first heir so that she would be tied down to the family no matter what. The whole thought of everything about the night world still made her uneasy; even Edmund could unnerve her sometimes with his abilities.

"Hey," said Edmund breaking Emma out of her thoughts. She blinked and his face came into view. "Thought I lost you for a moment," he smiled but Emma noticed it didn't reach his eyes.

"Just thinking," she said as she looked out a nearby window. He had taken her to the left wing of the house which overlooked a small lake in the backyard. She could feel his prescience in her mind, like an extra weight had been added and she knew he was getting angry but she almost didn't care. She was tired of the running and the hiding, the constant secrets that had to be kept, the guilt that never went away, she was tired.

"Just say it Emma," Edmund said in almost a whisper.

"Say what?"

"I can read your thoughts, you're leaving them out so openly," he said as he walked to the other side of the window and looked at her.

"I can't help that okay, and they're just my thoughts, my paranoia's, nothing more," Emma said as she glanced at him then looked quickly down at the floor. The hurt she saw in his eyes felt like it made her heart skip a beat. She didn't want to hurt him; it was the last thing in the world she wanted.

"But its what your always thinking, even when we first touched it was what you were thinking," he said flatly.

"What do you want me to say then; I can't help but not feel this way Edmund. I got thrown this whole new world that I never wanted to be apart of," she felt his anger flash through her mind and realized that she had insulted him.

"Edmund," she said as she looked up at him, his face showed no emotion though, "don't be angry."

"Don't be angry," he repeated? "This world is me, its who I am, I can't change that."

Emma felt the situation slowly falling through her fingers like sand, "I know Edmund but I can't change the way I feel either. I'm married and in the first few months of my marriage I'm having an affair, no less to my husband's best friend and from everything that you told me your world would kill us both if they found out."

"That's why we just have to be careful…"

"No,' she nearly yelled then quickly controlled herself. "No Edmund, I'm sorry but I just need time, I need to think about all of this. I'm scared, I'm so scared," the last part she trailed off into a whisper.

"Oh Emma," he said as he held her in his arms. "I will always protect you, you don't have to worry."

"Yes I do, I have to worry for the both of us because I know you won't," she felt him stiffen and pulled back to look at her. She felt the tears in her eyes ready to flow; she couldn't hold them back any longer.

"What are you saying then," he said as he looked down at her. Emma could feel his walls slowly start to go up around him.

"We need to end this," she said as she dropped her gaze and slowly pulled out of his embrace.

She waited for him to say something but he remained silent. "I'm sorry, I just can't handle this anymore, not now at least," she said after a moments pause as she looked into his eyes.

He stood apart from her as if she was a stranger to him, "so that is it then, a few words and its over with?"

Emma just looked at him as a tear streaked down her cheeks.

Edmund seem to stiffen up then and ran a hand through his hair. Emma could tell she had just broken his heart and was sure he was feeling the same thing she was. She felt horrible and selfish but she felt that she was going to have a mental breakdown soon if the affair had kept up.

"Well then Mrs. Delacruz, please inform your husband that I will be unable to stay for dinner tonight," he said with disdain as he brushed passed her and headed down the hallway.

Emma nearly chocked back a sobbed as she watched him go. He was leaving her now just how she had left him but everything in her body was screaming at her to stop him, to yell out his name and make him come back. He was nearing the end of the hallway and this was her chance to do it, all she had to do was say his name and he would come back and they would make up. Her mouth opened and she took a step forward and maybe because of the bond he looked back at her that instant and what would have been the perfect moment to do something was over just as it had started. Nothing came out of her mouth, she didn't move to go after him, and he only looked at her for a second before turning his head the other way and hurrying down the hallway. Now she was alone, all alone in the giant house and as she glanced out the window she noticed the sun had set, not to return for another day.


End file.
